Apr 16 2009
Obama and Calderon: “On the Same Page?”
We’ve all heard the saying “It’s not what you said, but how you said it.” The U.S. and Mexican Presidents obviously live by this. Not that this should surprise us about Obama.
But today, the two Presidents had a joint press conference in which they repeatedly mentioned that they are on the same page. But they don’t really seem to be actually on the same page.
They both agree that:
a) we are neighbors
b) drugs and people are traveling from Mexico to the U.S.
c) there are drug related deaths in Mexico, especially on the border, and this is a bad thing
d) the economy is bad right now
e) that increased trade is good for both the U.S. and Mexico.
On the other hand, in terms of solutions, they are on very different pages.
a) Obama believes that we should fight the drug cartels together. Calderon believes that although we should share intelligence, the U.S. should work to eliminate drug use on our side of the border, and Mexico will work on cracking down on violence and corruption in Mexico. Military and law enforcement joint operations are not an option for Calderon.
b) Obama does not think that we can completely eliminate or control the flow of people or drugs over the border. He thinks the violence will not stop, but can be reduced to a “local criminal problem.” Calderon believes that our end goal should be to obtain a legal and “orderly” migration moving in both directions. Although he didn’t flat out say it, it is also clear that he hopes to achieve a significant reduction in the flow of migrants from Mexico to the U.S. He believes that through trade and infrastructure projects, we can reduce poverty around the border and throughout Mexico, and thus reduce incentives for both migrants and drug trafickers.
c) Obama seems to believe that NAFTA stands for “North American “Fair” Trade Agreement.” He wants the U.S. to be able to enforce labor and other standards throughout the region. That’s right. He actually said that he wanted all partners to be able to enforce labor standards throughout the region. Calderon thinks that the U.S., Mexico, and Canada should view the global economic slump as an opportunity to improve North America’s standing vis-a-vis Europe and Asia. This can be done by increasing trade, not by adding any further limitations to trade. In fact, we should make trade within the region as profitable and unrestricted as possible.
While they seem to agree on all of the facts, they come from fundamentally different political perspectives. They don’t really agree on our future path at all.
Obama sees America as having the right/duty to interfere in Mexico (labor regulations, law enforcement, etc.) He thinks that the goal should be to a) impose American, liberal standards to Mexican businesses, and b) reduce immigration and drug trafficking to the point where it is no longer spilling over the border.
Calderon sees his nation as sovereign, with both the right and the responsibility to take care of itself. He thinks that cooperation toward mutual goals is desirable, but that each country should keep its focus on its side of the fence. He also thinks that we can and should create a situation in which the movement of large numbers of people and drugs across the border is no longer the best option for so many people. To do this, Mexico must be allowed to trade with the U.S. without restrictions.
But these two both have the political stumping skills to give the real impression that we are making progress here.
